Beech E35 accident near Blowing Rock, North Carolina, April 8, 2002
On April 8, 2002 at about 3:15 pm local time, a Beech E35, registered N3292C, was destroyed in an accident near Blowing Rock, North Carolina (Boone Inc airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's continued VFR flight in to known IMC, which resulted in an in-flight collision with trees in mountainous terrain. A factor was low ceiling.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- April 8, 2002 · about 3:15 pm local time
- Place
- Blowing Rock, North Carolina · Boone Inc · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Beech E35 · all E35s on the register
- Registration
- N3292C · no longer on the register · serial D-3959
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
Witnesses reported hearing the airplane maneuvering in a valley between two mountain ridges before seeing a fireball. The wreckage was located in a wooded area at the 3,600-foot level of a mountain ridge. Wreckage debris was scattered approximately 150 feet along a 360-degree magnetic heading from a group of trees freshly broken at similar heights. A weather observation facility 3.4 nautical miles northwest of the accident site at an elevation of 3,200 feet issued ten weather reports between 0802 and 1102 at approximately 20-minute intervals. The highest reported visibility during that time frame was 3 statute miles, and the highest reported ceiling was 500 feet. Examination of the wreckage revealed no evidence of pre-impact malfunction of the airframe or the engine.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 2,000 hours in all
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Maximum gross weight: 2,725 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental E-225-8 (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: HKY Hickory NC at 2:57 pm
- Destination: NC14 Boone NC
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 13, 2,100 ft by 40 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 250° at 4 knots
- Visibility: 2.5 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 300 ft
- Temperature: 46°F (8°C), dew point 45°F (7°C)
- Altimeter: 30.34 inHg
- Observation at 3:02 pm from TNB, 3 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, the folder of records gathered during the investigation, shown as the NTSB released them (the NTSB redacts some personal details first) and listed under the NTSB's own titles. This site's own text never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number ATL02FA077.